Fake tour site and card skimmer on the same trip to Barcelona, awesome trip overall
I went to Barcelona with a couple friends this summer and had one of those trips where everything was fun, but there were a few sketchy moments that made me way more careful. We were trying to book a small day tour outside the city and found a site that looked pretty normal at first. Decent photos, normal prices, reviews that seemed believable.
Then they sent us a separate payment link instead of letting us pay through the booking page. The link had the tour company name in it, but the URL felt off and they were rushing us to reserve because the spots were supposedly almost gone. One of my friends checked the company properly before we paid, and it turned out the real tour company had a completely different website. The fake one was just copying photos and making itself look official. A couple days later, I also almost used a random ATM near a busy tourist area, but the card slot looked loose and weird. I pulled back before putting my card in, and after looking closer it seemed like something had been fitted over it.
Maybe it was nothing, but it felt off enough that I walked away and used an ATM inside a bank instead. Still had a great trip, but it made me realize how easy it is to get careless when you are tired, rushing, or just in vacation mode. I used to think travel scams were obvious, but some of them look pretty normal until you slow down and check. Careful out there guys.